Puffs: a passing craze and its impact on the environment

A new craze among young people, puffs are causing concern both for their effect on teenagers and for their impact on the environment. A closer look.

What exactly are puffs?

Puffs are disposable electronic cigarettes with a sweet, confectionery taste. Convenient, easy to obtain and, above all, heavily flavoured, they are extremely popular among young people. A genuine craze in school and sixth-form playgrounds, this disposable version of the e-cig has met with striking success.

They have existed since 2019 on the other side of the Atlantic. It has to be said that the marketing built around the product has been carefully thought out ever since. Bright colours, fruit and candy flavours: nothing more was needed to catch the consumer’s eye. Social media made the product popular in France, but it is above all its low price that made its name.

An audience that is too young, and an environmental headache

Although selling smokers’ products to minors is in principle forbidden, puffs are easy to come by at tobacconists, in some supermarkets and even online. Young people are an at-risk audience, since puffs mostly contain nicotine and therefore create a degree of dependence.

Beyond the young audience being targeted, what worries the authorities just as much is the pollution these puffs generate. These small electronic cigarettes have to be taken to a recycling centre, to containers for used batteries or to electronic waste collection points. Teenagers, however, who make up the bulk of their users, do not take the trouble to follow the sorting rules and throw their disposable electronic cigarette into ordinary bins, or even into the countryside.

On top of being a major source of “new waste”, this additional pollution worries the magazine 60 millions de consommateurs. At a time when the environment and global warming are no longer a myth, following the sorting rules for disposable accessories and devices matters. For now, the magazine is simply drawing attention to the facts. If you use puffs, make sure you dispose of your e-cig in the dedicated collection points.